I haven’t written about my own health and fitness journey in a while, and I think it would be worthwhile for you to hear about it. I struggle, too. I fall off the wagon and have to jump back on (sometimes while it’s still running by me!). I shared with a few of my clients that this past week was the first week (literally, THE. FIRST. WEEK.) that I managed to log all of my planned workouts. It’s no small feat, and I know and understand this firsthand. And, you know what? It’s OK! You’re fine. I’m fine. We’re fine! Here is what I am doing to start March off strong.
Training
I have a tendency to program-hop. I hate writing my own program. You know the old saying about how the carpenter’s house is never done? Well, ditto on a personal trainer’s workout program. I have so much information and so many options that it’s hard to stick to one. I also am not training with a coach at the moment, which makes it twice as challenging to stay accountable to a program. I used ChatGPT to get me straight. Before you judge me for using AI, hear me out. I have a paid subscription to ChatGPT, and it knows me very well. I have loaded in all kinds of information, programs, and strategies. It uses all that knowledge to help me get to where I need to be. It asks the right questions and helps me come to my own conclusion.
It’s telling me to go back to the OG basic program, MAPS Anabolic. I already own it. I’ve run it before, and it’s a great foundational way to build muscle. It’s a three-day program that AI helped me customize for my own needs. I am running a lower-day, upper-day, and full-body day, as well as an optional “pump” day. I will walk each day, aiming for 8K steps. My goal is to build muscle, and I will use the scale, as well as progress on my trap bar deadlift and hip thrust, to gauge whether I am on track. This is a 12-week program, taking me to Memorial Day, the start of summer.
Nutrition
ChatGPT helped me see that I am not eating enough to build muscle. I’m at maintenance and need to add healthy carbs to help fuel my strength training. It understands my busy schedule, so it’s provided a quick-and-dirty roadmap to get me there.
Morning Fuel Rule
Pre: quick carb
Post: full shake
No skipping.
Dinner Carb Rule
Never protein + veg only.
Always carb + visible fat.
This will help me add 400 to 600 calories daily, which is about how much I’m short right now. This is totally doable and doesn’t require a ton of meal prep and planning.
Speaking of meal prep, that is something I am working on adjusting. I usually make one lunch to last the week. Lately, I’m getting bored with eating the same thing. It’s just not appealing, and it makes me skip it altogether, which is the opposite of what I want. So, if I don’t do leftovers from dinner, I plan to do two days of one lunch and two days of another. This way I won’t get bored.
I am recommitting to tracking my daily food intake, water, and workouts. Let’s go!
I hope my sharing this helps you see that we all need to reset once in a while. It’s human nature to fall into the comfort zone, and we all need a coach (or an AI chatbot) to help us along the way. I hope you will all root for and pray for me as I continue on my journey. You know, I’ve got all of you! Cheers and happy lifting and fueling!